1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a golf tee molded from sand with a mold.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, typical golf tees used in golf are molded from inexpensive, lightweight plastic materials. However, when plastic golf tees are left on golf courses, the shapes thereof remain unchanged. Therefore, the golf tees must be recovered. When the golf tees are not recovered, they may adversely affect the natural environment. For example, birds may swallow them. Golf tees molded from soil as a molding material are also disclosed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Registration Application Publication No. 62(1987)-183870 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 3(1991)-254768. The former discloses a golf tee formed by solid molding using a granular, powdered material, such as soil, in order that a receiving portion thereof has strength adequate for supporting a ball during use, and weathering proceeds speedily by rainwater, sunlight, etc., after using. The latter discloses a golf tee formed into the shape of a tee by mixing and integrating 10% to 60% by weight of charcoal, 5% to 30% by weight of fertilizer, the remainder composed of soil, and an appropriate quantity of shaping accelerator for shaping them. Since the golf tees using soil use materials existing inherently in the natural environment, that is, materials constituting the ground, recovery is not required, and the problem of birds swallowing golf tees does not occur.
However, since a golf tee using soil or sand, especially sand which is an aggregate of granular materials, is unlikely to have a reduced thickness, the golf tee must be molded into a massive shape as a whole, and therefore, the weight thereof becomes significantly larger than that of a plastic material. As a result, in particular, resistance becomes large when the golf tee is hit with a club when hitting a ball, so that the carry of the ball is decreased, and in addition, there are disadvantages from the viewpoint of portability and cost reduction.